Heartbeat is a British period drama television series which was first broadcast on ITV between 10 April 1992 and 12 September 2010. Set in the fictional town of Ashfordly and the village of Aidensfield in the North Riding of Yorkshire during the 1960s, the programme is based on the "Constable" series of novels written by ex-policeman Peter N. Walker, under the pseudonym Nicholas Rhea.